Le Chat Noir Cards

Price: £2.00 each (includes card and envelope)

We are grateful to Julian & Mami Williams of Two Bad Mice, who together with pianist Noriko Ogawa have created these four special cards to support victims of the Great East Japan Earthquake. They are supplied to the Japan Society at cost of production and all profits from the sale of these cards via the Society will go to the Tohoku Earthquake Relief Fund.

Alternatively please contact the Japan Society office on tel: 020 7935 0475 or email: info@japansociety.org.uk, with credit or debit card details. You can also send a cheque to The Japan Society, 13 /14 Cornwall Terrace, London NW1 4QP

History to the Cards

In 1881, an impresario called Rodolphe Salis, who delighted in being rude and embarrassing his guests, opened a cabaret house (literally entertainment house) in seedy premises in the Monmartre district of Paris. Le Chat Noir was the first place to provide a bar with a piano and entertainment. The club quickly became a platform for entertainers to draw large crowds, including their artistic friends. Within three years the club had moved to a sumptuous new location where the most avante-guarde Parisian artists of the day gathered and mixed with their rich clients. Amongst the famous musicians to be found there were Claude Debussy and Eric Satie.

Le Chat Noir is also remembered for its house journal, poster art by Theophile Steinlen and touring theatre company. The club closed soon after the owner’s death in 1897.

These cards were requested and celebrated Japanese pianist Noriko Ogawa, who wanted something to sell to raise money for victims of the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami. Noriko owns a black cat. All profits from every sale are donated to the Japan Society Tohoku Earthquake Relief Fund, providing support to local communities working to rebuild the lives and livelihoods in the affected regions.